Scaffold bracket



y 9 s. WEINSTEI'N 2,240,682

SCAFFOLD BRACKET Filed Apx il 16, 1940 s Sheets-Sheet 1 l Z5 i ,4. I k W C '-1 lNV NTOR Aw MM, BY

ATTORNEY y 1941. s. WEINSTEIN 2,240,682

SCAFFOLD BRACKET Filed April 16, 1940 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 1 i a MA 2' 7 I J; 24 25 H 3). 4 115:?!. 4 101 May 6, 1941. s. WEINSTEIN I SCAFFOLD BRACKET 3 Sheet 3 Film April 16. 1940 RNEY w QZ Y KT Figure 2, and

Fatented May 6, 1941 SCAFFOLD BRACKET Sam Weinstein, Irvington, N. 3., assigns; to Reuben Grant, Newark, N. J doing business as Scaffold Bracket '00.

Application April 16, 1940, Serial No. 329,855

10 Claims.

This invention relates in general to scaffold brackets of the type which includes a platform support slidable up and down on a vertical standard or upright, means for gripping said standard to hold the support at the desired elevation on the standard, and means for elevating the support step-by-step on said standard. In practice such scaffold brackets generally are utilized for supporting a platform upon at least two uprights or standards that are spaced from each other and from a wall of a building, there being one bracket on each upright with platform boards supported by and between the brackets.

One object of the invention is to provide a scaffold bracket that shall embodynovel and improved features of construction including a plurality of grippers to alternately grip and release a standard, and a pair of levers each cooperating with all of said grippers whereby upon oscillation of one of the levers the grippers may be actuated to elevate the bracket step-by-step, While upon oscillation of the other lever the grippers may be actuated to lower the bracket step-by-step, and the bracket can be handled with a minimum of manual labor, quickly and with a minimum of danger.

Another object is to provide such a scaffold bracket that shall also include novel and improved safety-grip means to ensure against accidental falling of the bracket during the raising and lowering operations.

Other objects are to provide a scafiold bracket of this character which shall embody novel and improved means for locking the lever-operated means in inoperative position to facilitate application and removal of the bracket to and from an upright or standard; and to obtain other advantages and results as will be brought out by the following description when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which Figure 1 is a front elevational view of a scaffold bracket embodying my invention.

Figure 2 is a transverse vertical sectional view taken on the line 22 of Figure 1.

Figure 3 is a top plan view of the bracket from the line 3-3 of Figure l. a

Figure 4 is a vertical sectional view on the line fl.4 of Figure 2 with the parts in the relative positions shown in Figure 1.

Figure 5 is a horizontal sectional view on the line 55 of Figure 4.

Figure 6 is a similar view on the line 6-6 of Figure 7 is a view similar to Figure 4 showing the parts in different positions from that shown in Figure 4.

. Figure 8 is a fragmentary view showing the grippers locked out of engagement with the upright. i a

Specifically describing the invention, the scaffold bracket comprises a platform support A which includes a rectangular sleeve! of a size to telescopically slide on an upright B which is generally of wood and secured to the side wall of the building in spaced relation thereto. In practice, two or more of such uprights are utilized, and one bracket A is mounted on each upright to support platform boards 0 between each two adjacent brackets.

Rigidly depending from opposite sides of the sleeve l are straps 2 to which is rigidly connected a horizontal bracket arm 3 that is supported by a brace 4 connected to the lower endsof the straps as at 5. As shown, the bracket. arm 3 is preferably formed of two sections pivotally connected together at 6 so that the outer section I may be swung inwardly to reduce the over-all size of the bracket during handling and transportation thereof.

Carried by the support A above the sleeve, are a pair of grippers 8 and 9 each to engage the upright B and movable to alternately grip and release the upright so as normally to permit movement of the support A freely upwardly and prevent movement of the support downwardly on said upright. The gripper 8 is approximately rectangular so as to encircle the upright with theupper edge ll) of one side and the lower edge 1.00 of the opposite side of the gripper adapted to bite into the upright. The gripper also has arms that are pivotally connected by a rod H to the arms of a U-shaped link l2, the extremities of which are pivotally connected at [3 to the respective arms of a U-shaped lever I l. The extremities of the arm of the lever are pivotally connected at l5 to opposite sides of the sleeve I. Coil springs [6 are mounted on the pivot rod II and have their extremities respectively connected to the link l2 and the gripper 8 so as to normally influence the edge E0 of the gripper into, biting engagement with the upright.

The gripper 9 may be U-shaped and embraces the upright with the edge I? of its base portion adapted to bite into the upright at the opposite side thereof from the edge ID of the gripper 8. The extremities of the arms of the gripper 9 are pivotally connected at 18 to the arms of a U- shaped link it), the extremities of which are pivotally connected at 20 to the sleeve I. A

U-shaped lever 2| is pivotally connected intermediate its ends to the gripper 8, as at 22, and has its arms pivotally connected to the gripper 9 by links 23.

A third gripper 24, which is also U-shaped, has the extremities of its arms pivotally connected to the brace 4 of the bracket arm 3 by a pin 25, said gripper being normally influenced by a spring 28 so that the upper edge 21 of the base portion of the gripper is caused normally to bite into the upright B and prevent descent or sliding downwardly of the scaffold bracket on the upright. A releasing push rod 28 has one end pivotally connected to the gripper as at 29 and its other end slidably mounted in a guide 30 mounted to one of the straps 2. By pushing downwardly on the push rod 28, the gripper 24 may be swung downwardly out of biting engagement with the upright.

To assist the sleeve in guiding and holding the platform support in proper position on the upright, a pair of rods or rollers |8| are mounted on the support in spaced relation longitudinally thereof, one to engage the side of the upright at which the bracket arm 3 is located and the other to engage the opposite side of the upright.

'In operation of the device, when it is desired to elevate the scaffold bracket on the upright, the lever I4 is first swun upwardly from the position shown in Figures 1 and 4 to the position shown in Figure 7, the gripper being tilted during this movement so that the edges l0 and It thereof will slide freely upwardly on the upright, while the edges of the grippers 9 and 24 firmly bite into the upright to holdthe bracket against descent. At the same time, the lever 2| will swing idly upwardly. Then the lever. I4 is swung downwardly into the position shown in Figures 1 and 4, the edge I8 of the gripper 8 biting into the upright; and, at the same time, the gripper 24 is tilted and slides freely upwardly on the upright,.whereby the sleeve I, straps 2 and bracket arm 3 are elevated. As the lever I4 is swung downwardly, the lever 2| swings idly downwardly. I This operation can be continued with a pumping action on the lever l4 to raise the scaffold bracket step-by-step.

To lower the bracket step-by-step, the push rod 28 is forced downwardly to release the gripper 24 from the upright, whereupon the lever 2| swung-upwardly from the position shown in Figures-1 and 4to the position shown in Figure 7, the gripper 8 holding the bracket against descent and the gripper 9 being tilted and slid downwardly on the upright, whereby the sleeve straps 2 and bracket arm 3 are permitted to descend by gravity. At the same time, the lever l4 swings idly upwardly. Then the lever 2| is swung downwardlyifrom the position shown in Figure '7 so asto cause the gripper 9 to bite into the upright andso as to tilt the gripper 8 and slide'the same-downwardly on the upright. As thelever- ZLis-swung downwardly, the lever |4 swingsidlydownwardly. These operations may be repeated with a pumping action on the lever 2| to lower the support A step-by-step. After the bracket has been lowered to the desired point, the push rod 28 is released to permit the gripper 24 to again bite into the upright.

With this construction, it will be, observed that the bracket may be both raised and lowered stepby-step with a minimum of manual labor, quickly and with a minimum of danger. During normal use of the bracket, all three of the grippers 8, 9

and 24 firmly support the bracket on the upright,

aae esa The gripper 24 serves as a safety gripper during elevation of the bracket, in case of failure of either of the grippers 8 and 9.

To permit the bracket to be easily and quickly slid upon and off of an upright, the two grippers 8 and 9 may be locked in a position such that they will not bite into the upright, as shown in Figure 8. To locate the grippers in this position, the upper gripper is simply swung downwardly against the influence of the springs i6, and to lock the grippers in that position, the gripper 9 may have a stud 3| to be engaged by a hook 32 on the end of a latch 33 that has a slot 34 through which passes the pivot bolt I5 that is secured in the sleeve To slide the bracket on or off an upright, the grippers 8 and 9 are looked as shown in Figure 8 and the gripper 24 is pushed down wardly by the push rod 28 so that it will not bite into the upright, whereupon the bracket will slide freely in either direction along the upright.

Various modifications and changes in the details of structure of the scaffold bracket will oc our to those skilled in the art as within the scope of theinvention.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is:

l. A scaffold bracket comprising a platform support to be mounted for vertical movement on an upright, a first gripper and a second gripper each to engage said upright and movable to alternately grip and release the upright, a first lever pivotally connected to said platform support, means connecting said first lever to the first gripper, a second lever pivotally connected to said first gripper, means connecting said second gripper to said support, and means connecting said second'lever to said second gripper, said grippers being'formed and arranged normally to permit said support to slide freely upwardly on saidupright and to grip said upright and prevent downward movement of the support, and swinging of said first lever in one direction permitting said first gripper to grip and actuating said second gripper to release said upright and swinging of said first lever in the other direction actuating said first gripper to release and permitting said second gripper to grip said upright to raise the said support step-by-step, while said second lever operates said first and second grippers in reverse order to that incident to operation of the first lever, swinging of the second lever in one direction permitting the first gripper to grip and actuating the second gripper to release said upright and swinging of the second lever in the other direction actuating. the first gripper to release and permitting the second gripper to grip said upright so as to lower said support step-bystep.

2. The scaffold bracket set forth in claim 1 with the addition of a third gripper movably connected to said support to normally grip said upright and permit free movement of said support upwardly and prevent movement thereof downwardly, and means for moving said gripper at will to release the gripper from said upright.

3, The scaiiold bracket set forth in claim 1 with the addition of means for holding both of said grippers out of gripping engagement. with said upright. V

4. The scaffold bracket set forth in claim 1 with the addition of a third gripper movably connected to said support to normally grip said up right andperrnit free movement of said support upwardly and prevent movement thereof downwardly, and means for moving said gripper at will to release the gripper from said upright and means for holding both of the first-mentioned and the second-mentioned grippers out of gripping engagement with said upright.

5. A scaffold bracket comprising a platform support, a lever pivotally mounted at one end on said support, a link connected to said lever intermediate the ends of the latter, a first gripper to engage and release alternately an upright and pivotally connected to said link, spring means for normally causing said gripper to engage said upright to normally permit the support to slide freely upwardly on the upright and prevent said support from sliding downwardly, a second lever pivotally connected intermediate its ends on said first gripper, a link pivotally connected to said support, a second gripper pivotally connected to said link, and a link connecting said second gripper to one end of said second lever, said second gripper normally permitting said support to move freely upwardly on said upright and preventing downward movement of the support, and swing ing of said first lever in one direction permitting said first gripper to grip and actuating said second gripper to release said upright and swinging of said first lever in the other direction actuating said first gripper to release and permitting said second gripper to grip said upright to raise the support step-by-step, while said second lever opcrates said first and second grippers in reverse order to that incident to operation of the first lever, swinging of the second lever in one direction permitting the first gripper to grip and actuating the second gripper to release said upright and swinging of the second lever in the other direction actuatin the first gripper to release and permitting the second gripper to grip said upright so as to lower said support step-by-step.

6. A scaffold bracket comprising a platform support having guide means for mounting the support to slide vertically on an upright, a pair of grippers each to slidably move along an upright and in one position to grip and in another position to release the upright, means including a first lever for connecting one gripper to said support, and means including a second lever for connecting the other gripper to said support and to the first-mentioned gripper, so that said each gripper is actuatable to grip and release alternately said upright and swinging of said first lever in one direction causes the first-mentioned gripper to grip and the second-mentioned gripper to release said upright and swinging of said first lever in the other direction causes said firstmentioned gripper to release and said secondmentioned gripper to grip said upright to raise the said support step-by-step, while said second lever operates said first-mentioned and secondmentioned grippers in reverse order to that incident to operation of the first lever, swinging of the second lever in one direction causing the first-mentioned gripper to grip and the secondmentioned gripper to release said upright and swinging of the second lever in the other direction causing the first-mentioned gripper to release and the second-mentioned gripper to grip said upright so as to lower said support step-bystep.

7. The scaffold bracket set forth in claim 6 with the addition of a third gripper movably connected to said support to normally grip said upright and permit free movement of said support upwardly and prevent movement thereof downwardly, and means for moving said gripper at will to release the gripper from said upright.

8. A scaffold bracket comprising a platform support to be mounted for vertical movement on an upright, a first gripper and a second gripper each to slidably move along said upright and in one position to grip and in another position to release the upright, a lever directly pivotally connected to said first gripper, means connecting said first gripper to said support, means connecting the second gripper to said support, and means pivotally connectin said lever to said second gripper, means normally causing said grippers to grip said upright and prevent downward movement of the support, and said grippers being arranged so that upon swinging of said lever in one direction the second gripper is caused to grip the upright and the first gripper is released from the upright, while upon swinging of the lever in the opposite direction the second gripper is caused to release said upright and the first gripper is caused to grip said upright, so as to lower said platform support step-by-step.

9. The scaffold bracket set forth in claim 8 with the addition of a third gripper movably connected to said support to normally grip said upright and prevent movement thereof downwardly, and means for moving said gripper at will to release the gripper from said upright.

10. A scaffold bracket comprising a platform support, a lever pivotally mounted at one end on said support, a link connected to said lever intermediate the ends of the latter, a first gripper to engage and release alternately an upright and pivotally connected to said link, spring means for normally causing said gripper to engage said upright to normally permit the support to slide freely upwardly on the upright and prevent said support from sliding downwardly, a second lever pivotally connected intermediate its ends on said first gripper, a link pivotally connected to said support, a second gripper pivotally connected to said link, and a link connecting said second gripper to one end of said second lever, said second gripper normally permitting said support to move freely upwardly on said upright and preventing downward movement of the support, and upon oscillation of the second lever one gripper being caused to release and grip alternately and the other gripper being caused alternately to release and grip said upright successively so as to lower said platform support step-by-step.

SAM WEINSTEIN CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION.

' Patent No. 2 ,2l;o,6 2. May 6, 19in.

SAM WEINSTEIN.

It is hereby certified that error appears in the printed specification of the above numbered patent q ing correction as follows: Page'2, vfirst column, line 51, after "gripper" insert the reference numeral -8 and that the said Letters Patent should be read with this correction therein that the some may conform to the 'record of the case in the Patent Office.

Signed and sealed this 5rd dgy of June, A. D. 19lpl'.

. Henry Van Arsdale, (Seal) Acting'Commissioner of Patents. 

